Whitsun Carol Now Whitsuntide is come you very well do know Come serve the Lord we must before we do go Come serve him truly with all your might and heart And then from heaven your soul shall never depart. How do you know how long we have to live For when we die oh then what would we give For being sure of having our resting place Since we have run our simple wretched race. Down in those gardens where flowers grow in ranks Down on your knees and to the Lord give thanks Pray unto the Lord that angels he may bring And then in heaven your soul shall sit and sing. (repeat the tune for the last two lines on the following two lines) Down on your knees and pray both night and day Pray unto the Lord that He will lead you the right way. Both young and old, both rich and poor, give ear Don't allow your children to lie, boast curse nor swear Do not allow them to keep ill company For that will surely bring them to shame and misery. Come all those children all in the streets we meet All in their pastimes so even and complete So its how you may hear them lie, boast, curse and swear Before they do know one word of any prayer. Now we may bring you the royal branch of oak God bless our King and Queen and all the royal folk God bless our King and Queen and all the world beside Then the Lord He will send us all a merry Whitsuntide. I got this from the singing of John Roberts and Tony Barrand. NX OCT99
Thanks to Mudcat for the Digital Tradition!